Transportation Department

Seal of the United States Department of Transportation
Flag of the United States Department of Transportation
Headquarters of the U.S. Department of Transportation
Department overview
Formed	April 1, 1967; 50 years ago (1967-04-01)
Jurisdiction	United States of America
Headquarters	1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, D.C. 38°52′32.92″N 77°0′10.26″W / 38.8758111°N 77.0028500°W / 38.8758111; -77.0028500Coordinates: 38°52′32.92″N 77°0′10.26″W / 38.8758111°N 77.0028500°W / 38.8758111; -77.0028500
Employees	58,622
Annual budget	$77.2 billion USD (FY2014)
Department executives	Elaine Chao, Secretary Jeffrey A. Rosen, Deputy Secretary Joan DeBoer, Chief of Staff Kathryn B. Thomson, General Counsel Nitin Pradhan, CIO Chris Bertram, CFO Blair Anderson, Under Secretary for Policy
Child agencies	Federal Aviation Administration Federal Highway Administration Federal Railroad Administration Federal Transit Administration Maritime Administration
Website	www.transportation.gov

The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is a federal Cabinet department of the U.S. government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967. It is governed by the United States Secretary of Transportation.

Its mission is to "Serve the United States by ensuring a fast, safe, efficient, accessible, and convenient transportation system that meets our vital national interests and enhances the quality of life of the American people, today and into the future."

Prior to the Department of Transportation, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Transportation administered the functions now associated with the DOT. In 1965, Najeeb Halaby, administrator of the Federal Aviation Agency – the future Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) – suggested to U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson that transportation be elevated to a cabinet-level post, and that the FAA be folded into the DOT.

In 2012, the DOT awarded $742.5 million in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to 11 transit projects. The awardees include light rail projects. Other projects include both a commuter rail extension and a subway project in New York City, and a bus rapid transit system in Springfield, Oregon. The funds subsidize a heavy rail project in northern Virginia, completing the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's Metro Silver Line to connect Washington, D.C., and the Washington Dulles International Airport. (DOT had previously agreed to subsidize the Silver Line construction to Reston, Virginia.)